The Darkness [Paperback]

Crystal Connor (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: December 1, 2010

The Darkness has been selected as a two time Award-Winning Finalist in the 2011 International Book Awards in the fiction categories of Cross Genre Fiction and Multicultural Fiction!


Artemisia, a scientist who also practices alchemy, is wealthy beyond imagination. She is one of the founding members of the Skyward Group, a privately funded, secret, research facility conducting experiments that erase what tradition has established as the boundaries separating the realm of man from the realm of God. Artemisia has everything she wants - money, fame, knowledge and power - except for a child. Inanna is a powerful and dangerous witch, also wealthy beyond imagination. Her powers are greater and more deadly than any in the long tradition before her. Inanna has everything she wants - money, knowledge and God-like power - except for a child. The Child has nothing. At three months of age, he knows only what he has experienced through the bars of his locked cage. He has nothing. He doesn't have a mommy. He doesn't have a daddy. He doesn't have a name. The scientists who created him do not handle him, because they know The Child is dangerous.

In The Darkness, Two women clash in a vicious battle that has been fought since the days of King Solomon - the fight over a child. One woman unleashes the nightmarish arsenal of modern science while the other dispatches the weaponries of witchcraft. And as The Child grows up, his love for one and resentment for the other will change the fate of both these women, forever.

Product Details

• Paperback: 266 pages
• Publisher: Bennett & Hastings Publishing (December 1, 2010)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1934733377
• ISBN-13: 978-1934733370
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 5.5 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (24 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,710,725 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Questions for the author:
What made you want to write science fiction?

Well it's the way I like to be entertained. I'm a big fan of the idea of forbidden knowledge, conspiracy theories, government cover-ups, and secret societies.
I rarely missed an episode of the X-files or Millennium. My own worst enemy was right up my alley and now I'm watching Fringe both on DVD and online...I can't get enough of it; and every book I pick up has some type of monster in it.

How long have you been writing?

I've always been able to tell a really good story. I asked my mom if she could remember when I first started telling stories and she said, "Yes I remember...it was from the moment you learned how to tell a lie."
My mom said I got in trouble for whatever it was I was lying about but not necessarily the lie because they were always so imaginative and creative. She says that sometimes I would create a whole cast of accomplices even if I was the only person at the "crime scene."

My brother once found a play that I had written for our father when I was very young. It was only three acts but what was so crazy was that it had instructions for the lighting and stage crews.
I was in jr. high when I started transferring my oral stories to paper and I have been writing them down since.

What is your writing method?

I write like a raving lunatic! I was once told that the way that I write is raw and undisciplined and I think he said that because I've never taken any type of writing classes.

He was reviewing a chapter of The Darkness and three pages consisted of one giant run on sentence. My written grammar is atrocious and my spelling is even worse but I don't care because I know what I'm trying to say; and besides that why God created editors!

I just write and I write on everything. I have several note pads full of what appears to be the ramblings of a madman, reams of scratch paper full cultural proverbs, references to the Bible & Koran and random quotes; and my research consist of sticky notes that are plastered everywhere...and once I wrote on my forearm while I was driving on the freeway because I didn't want to lose an idea.


What gives you inspiration for your stories, what sparks the different characters, and how do you intertwine them?

The inspiration for my stories comes from everywhere: the things that I am afraid of, a partial conversation I hear as I walk through a crowed room; the crazy, wonderful, unexplainable, things that little kids say and do, the crazy, horrible, inexcusable, things that we do to each other as adults and the random acts of heroism and kindness of strangers - and of course Monsters, Anti-hero's and Villains (oh my!)

What sparks my characters are the everyday people I grew up around and surround myself with, which for the most part are women. I got an email asking if I was a feminist and though I believe in equality among the sexes I hardly qualify as an activist. I grew up in a matriarchal household; most of my friends did too.

Growing up watching the incredible things that my mom did to ensure we were taken care of; and watching the way her and her friends took care of each other and all of us is the bases on which my character development comes from and every story I write has an incredibility strong woman at its foundation.
I'm not sure I would use the word intertwine, collide is more like it and they do so with such violence you can actually hear it.

Who influenced your writing?

I think I'm more influenced by concepts and "What if" questions rather than other authors; however when you read my work there is no denying who my literary hero's are and who I try to emulate: Stephen King, Dean R. Koontz, Octavia Butler, Michael Crichton and Robin Cook.

Why is Adam not trying to understand his "mother" the Dr.? It seems he would have many questions for her?

He's angry. He does have a lot of questions but the more he thinks about it the more it upsets him.

It's because Adam doesn't ask the right questions or know the whole story is why you start to get that awful feeling in the pit of your stomach. It's like seeing there is going to be a train wreck but knowing there's nothing you can do to stop it.

Does Adam know that his power does not simply come from Inanna?

Actually I don't think that he does. Adam was only four years old when Inanna rescued him. His earliest memories are of her alter room, reading from her spell books and studying in her library.

Inanna and Myrddin taught him how to use and control the results of his genetic alterations through their skill and knowledge of witchcraft and sorcery; and though Adam uses both his powers from his genetic engineering and his powers from witchcraft he doesn't seem to differentiate between which war chest he gets his armory from.

Is he going to ever leave the "dark side"?

"If you only knew the powaaah of the Dark Side" I'm sorry, that's a pretty bad impression of James Earl Jones. Actually Adam quotes Darth Vader in The Darkness, he says the exact same thing but his impression is much better than mine. So will Adam leave the dark side...we'll just have to say a prayer keep our fingers crossed and wait and see.


Was it Inanna's goal to cause Adam to be so powerful, and vindictive?

Wow, that's a really good question and one I haven't really thought about in that way. Gosh, I don't think so. Inanna loves Adam and they are extremely close. Anyone who knows these two would never believe that Inanna did not give birth to Adam, no mother wants anything bad to happen to their kids; and like wise no mother would want to knowingly raise a child like David Seltzer's Damien - but with that being said Adam was already extremely powerful due to his genetic engineering and Inanna increased his power by teaching him witchcraft; but you can only teach someone what you know. Because Inanna is so powerful and vindictive it was inevitable that her son would be too.

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful

3.0 out of 5 stars Great story, but needed more character development October 5, 2011

By Alyssa A.

Format:Paperback

It started off slowly, but a quarter of the way in, I was completely interested in the story. The Darkness deals with a mixture of super technology and dark witchcraft, which I found intriguing. The writing was more factual than I generally like (a lot of telling, very little showing), but I got used to it and didn't find it as annoying once I started reading more. Overall, I think this is an entertaining story that remains suspenseful until the very end.

However, the characterization wasn't enough for me. Part of this is told in first person, and with that point of view, I especially expect to have some sort of emotional connection to the main character. This didn't happen at all. I think it was because the narration was entirely factual. We don't get a lot of Artemisia's feelings, and if we do, they're rather shallow. Instead of reflection, the character only says, "I'm upset" (or whatever emotion she's supposed to be feeling) and moves on. Maybe she'll have a drink, but that's it. There aren't any deeper thoughts or tell-tale actions going on. I wanted more from her. The same thing can go for Inanna and Adam (The Child) as well, but I didn't have so much of a problem with their characters. Their stories were told in third person, and I didn't consider them the "main characters." Besides, I think their history was more fully realized than Artemisia's, which gave them more depth.

Also, all the characters are perfect. They are all beautiful, incredibly rich, successful, smart, can speak multiple languages, etc. I wanted them to have some flaws.

Despite this, I thought the story was enjoyable. I liked how the magic came from different cultures, and I especially liked the voodoo influence. The plot was suspenseful and delightfully frustrating as Adam tries to come to terms with his past. I thought the ending was rushed, but it's a perfect ending -- I would have been disappointed if it had ended any other way. If you're at all interested in dark stories or witchcraft, you should give this one a try. Like I said, the characterization had flaws, but the story is truly fantastic.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Enjoyable Reading December 7, 2010

By tsilvercoin

Format:Paperback

"The Darkness" by Crystal Conner is a dark tale spinning the reader into its web of sci-fi, fantasy and reality. In the beginning you are bombarded with a lot of colleagues names and scientific jargon that might tend to throw you off. Saving grace is that you get to meet the villain of the story first hand in the beginning and there is nothing about Artemisia's personality that would make you like her. Selfish, rich, brilliant spoiled and completely void of any sense of humanity. You are drawn into a world where science over rides common sense and the pursuit of knowledge walks a thin line right along with insanity.

What if?..This is the question that will be constantly lurking in the back of your mind as you read further into the novel. Should mankind dabble into "stem cell" research just because they can?
What is your stand on cloning? Yes, these are hard pressed questions that I was continuously asking myself as I read this fascinating story. How far should man go in playing "God" and then what would man do if one of their experiments decides to focus on destroying them?

Artemisia, is faced with some hard pressed choices as she comes face to face with the reality that all of her money and influence will not protect her from the clutches of "Adam". From the moment you read "I used to call you Mommy" you have to know more. Interesting read.
I would place this right along with authors such as Dean Koontz and Ray Bradbury.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Morgue Anne Review of The Darkness by Crystal Conner February 22, 2012

By Simply Twisted Productions

Format:Paperback

The Darkness by Crystal Conner is most definitely a niche-genre book, but it really is worth a read by everyone because of how unique it is. Conner is one of those women who radiates strength with great intensity, and it shows up most in her writing. The two women this novel centers around have quite a bit in common - they are both proud black women with a great knowledge of the boundaries of science and magic, and both have used this knowledge to achieve great success. Artesmisia is a alchemist turned jeweler, who uses profits from her Bigger-Than-Tiffany's corporation to run a top secret research lab determined to crack the mysteries of the universe. Inanna is a sorceress like no other, destined from birth to be miles above the best. Neither woman wants for much, and admittedly this makes them harder to relate to on a personal level, but it is obvious that their success is hard-won and owed to their great emotional strength, although they come across at times like spoiled women who have grown too accustomed to their lives of luxury. Yet despite being rare birds in a very small zoo and sharing such a strong devotion to powers beyond that of the known world, they do not meet for many years. This is where our third character comes in. Adam, the wild child biologically owed to neither woman, yet compelled to both of them as a son. This is a book that holds high the power of the Mother - not just as a biological imperative, but as a title that must be earned. We go through several transformations of Adam as he is a frightened toddler, a powerful sorcerer, and a regular, jockish teenager, all the time having a woman to look up to and call "mother". Adam is a product of many worlds colliding, although never fully explained in origin, he absorbs all of the knowledge around him like a human sponge. He is beyond special to the point that it takes more than one woman to provide the love required, and while it may take a while to fully comprehend, it is worth the journey. This is not a book you will read in one sitting, it falls with the slower-paced horror novels rather than the Stephen King's of pop-horror. This is a book that you find yourself strangely drawn to, wondering what will happen next to the characters that you can't help but feel for. You watch as everything gets set up from the beginning for a tempest of godly proportion, but it's impossible to stop coming back for more. Crystal Conner is an author I support not only because she is a rarity in the world of horror authors, but because she brings to her work the fiery passion that can only be found in her unique perspective. The Darkness is the first novel of hers that I have sat down and read, and it was most definitely worth the wait. I recommend this to anyone who is drawn to the power of the feminine and knows that the world rests on the backs of mothers.